Review Demo - Electro-Harmonix Green Russian Big Muff
Вставка
- Опубліковано 6 лют 2025
- Read the review: bit.ly/GreenRus...
I’ve acquired many fuzzes since I bought my Sovtek Big Muff more than two decades ago. And it’s still, hands-down, my favorite. For my purposes it does everything: droning controllable feedback, punky crunch, Valkyrie-wail lead sounds, and psychedelically thuggish buzz that would make a Vox Tone Bender blush. Specialized fuzz units in my collection might do certain things better, or be more appropriate in a specific situation, but I’d feel okay if my old Sovtek was the only pedal I had for a session or show.
Electro-Harmonix’s new-version Green Russian Big Muff slides into each of those roles with ease. Its voices often make it a dead ringer for an original-and those sounds that aren’t exactly original are more than serviceably authentic. At 80 bucks, it’s also one of the great fuzz bargains, since the original sold with its own wooden box for 59 bones.
Unless you’re a candy-colored delight from the 1972 Colorsound catalog, it’s hard to imagine a pedal with more visual presence than an original Sovtek Big Muff. The space-conscious design of the EHX reissue means you won’t experience the writ-large aesthetic virtues of the original (nor its can’t-miss dimensions, as you bounce around a dark stage).
The top end is sizzling hot, surprisingly concise and focused, and both musical and malleable at the fringes of feedback.
But having an authentically enormous sounding Russian Muff in a Nano enclosure is a smart trade for most. And you’ll have extra room to stack other fuzzes, drives, and boosts around the Green Russian-which it excels at accommodating.
Construction is clean, printed-circuit stuff. But despite its assembly line origins, the circuit is recognizably a Big Muff, and four BC547 transistors hover like spindly Martians over the reassuringly simple, ordered PC board. Jacks are board-mounted. Knobs turn with precision and satisfying resistance, and each control has an impressively responsive and nuanced taper. It’s certainly sturdier feeling than its predecessor.
Continue reading: bit.ly/GreenRus...
Love the Green Russian Big Muff! I have all of the reissues (including the Triangle Big Muff), and I have to say that I'm enjoying the Green Russian the most. Cheers to Electro-Harmonix!
glad to see John allow the grey to shine through.
I didn’t know David Byrne worked at premier guitar 😋😋😋😋
Looks good John. Great demo as well. Love me some muff
This one is the best in the Big Muff family in my opinion , it's really easy to dial in different kind of sound , and of course this tiny boost in bass medium frequencies she got is so great.
6:48 “Now let’s unleash hell.” - John Bohlinger 🤣
So many great single-liners in this videos!
“I don’t care I’ve only got one pedal; do whatever you want,”
Pro trick: watch series at Flixzone. Been using it for watching loads of movies during the lockdown.
@Coleman Gael definitely, have been using Flixzone} for years myself =)
John really does great reviews. This Big Muff sounds like a monster.
That was a great review John.
I'm buying one tomorrow.
Love that late afternoon Martian club lighting
Excellent demo John! Thanks😎
I have one...it's killer! When I learn to play as good as John, it'll sound even better..
that playing at the start is absolutely nasty I love it 😍
damn dude that was awesome...oh the old 121 ... i need one
Loving that hair, John, and great review. Can't wait to get one!
Sounded great John!
Big ups from Windsor, ON!
John smoked that slide!
keep rollin' and -a - tumblin'
I love your playing always. want that t shirt as well
The lefty bridge was that to fatten the 1st and 2nd strings n how did it work out . Sounds good from here . Iv gotten this pedal by now,, like it . Thx
I like the low pass built into it.
sounds real good John
The only thing better than John’s warmth, personality, and interest in gear is his playing. Dudes a motherfu¢/er
At 2:22ish - “I’ll show you a Les Paul and then a Telecaster...” what happened to the Telecaster portion?
This big muffs can produce nice sound , pink floyd style, on a Fender Vibro Champ?
Need to get one to try alongside my original ... Very curious.
all amps are treble Happy ! Roll it back and have fun .. .. . ...
Can't get better than a big muff.
Sounds good to me! Might pick one up to compare to my Hoof.
The Hoof should cover all this territory.I would suggest that you try something totally different, like the EHX Octavix, or Fulltone '69, Soul Bender, or Octafuzz.If you wanted to spend a little more , maybe the EQD Spires, or Crazy Tube Circuit's Limelight.
@@markferguson3745 thank you. I'd really like to try out an octave fuzz. I just don't love the Hoof like I expected to. I think I could sell it and buy a used op amp muff and a fuzz face mini for similar money. I'll check out what you've suggested :)
@@Brayden329 I owned a Hoof, and the Hoof Reaper long ago, and quickly grew tired of both.
I would suggest that you avoid the cheaper and more common alternatives, - they suffer from similar limitations.The OpAmp is a step down versatility wise , from the Hoof, and the only cool thing about the Dunlop are that they change dramatically with guitar volume knob.
Think you'd be better served by one good circuit than two so so one's.
Stay well.
Hey Green Russian owners, how well does it work with pedals in front of it on a board? I'm thinking about buying one. I have a Fulltone Clyde wah that I'd like to put in front of it. It's an older Clyde which I believe has a buffer circuit and I know a lot of fuzz pedals don't like buffers. TIA
It works great for me, I have it in the fx loop of my ehx noise gate and a tube screamer before it in that loop. I also have a crybaby from hell right before the noise gate
You gotta love John... What the hell is written on his hand?
John, in your point of view, what do you prefer? Green Russian Big Muff or Triangle Big Muff Pi, and why? Thanks for such good reviews that you do c:
I wanted to hear a bass through it too:(
Want!
John buddy, love the gear but I'm tryna cop some of these tasty licks you're throwing down! Stellar gear review as always, but them licks be tasty
barf
I took away from this demo is that I want a demo. That was not the point! Ugh
excellent review, but... as with all these reviews, whats always mentioned obviously are the rig breakdown like the amp settings, mic used ect. and never the guitars tone settings, treble/ bass . sometime i just assume these reviews the guitars tone settings are dimed and the guitars volume is the only knob that gets used in these vids. just my 2 cents, the tone knobs on a electric can be very dynamic as well , which can color things up with how ever one sets them to and is often overlooked.
Would love to hear a proco rat before it. That would be mad
Seems like it's hard to hit a good sweet spot onnthis pedal. It's either too muddy or too bright and you can tell John never lands on a tone he really loves. I can see spending an hour rolling the knobs up and down till I realize it's just not for me and return it.
Yeah all the ehx fuzzes except the op amp one are kinda like this, all high or mud. I just ram them full blast into a dirty amp anyway!
He’s not looking for a tone he loves, he does compliment the tones he gets, he’s doing a demo.
Put a tube screamer or a Boss SD-1 in front of it… Trust me.
You need to play with your guitar controls a bit. There is no “bad” fuzz. 💁♂️
John, you're a great player, and I have utmost respect for you, but why do constantly insist upon using slide and country style playing to demo every piece of gear you demo? A Green Russian Big Muff is a death machine for punk, metal and hardcore type playing. You'd be getting the point across better for this pedal with a more aggressive playing style. Just my 2 cents.
thanks... I can't escape my influences.
I understand what you refer to as a power machine. However, many of us use the fuzz pedals to find new sounds or a specific tone. I think it's good that I would use it in this way because in most of the reviw you find on the internet everyone uses it the same.
Dunno, it seems to me that when it comes to hardcore punk etc. anything goes - it's not exactly a kind of genre when you really dig in every note and passing phrase. Yet there's something about good fuzz tone applied to simple slides and intervals which makes it really magical.
I LOVE this style, and here's why.
Ultra aggressive maxed out stuff is a one trick pony, and 99% of reviews that's all they do. They may have more talent on one finger than my whole hand. I tip my hat to their hard work and practice. But super speed crazy distorted arpeggios hold my attention for three seconds. How often you gonna use that in a band context? Almost never. Maybe twenty seconds of a four minute song.
This country / blues / rock stuff, more chords, more licks and fills, more dynamics in picking hand, the subtleties of technique shines through. You can add texture under vocals without standing out, or melt faces with a creamy solo. Whatever. Versatility matters. In-band context matters. Playing *with* others matters. The crowd matters! This is the stuff that most people dance to, sing along with, tap their feet, and stay the whole show.
I've had a hundred billion requests for Freebird, Old Time Rock N Roll, Mustang Sally. Nobody has ever said to me "hey make your tone sound like shit and burn up the fretboard until it sounds like an etude practice piece and barely qualifies as music."
@@johnbohlinger4868 Hearing your style of playing through a muff was awesome. I completely disagree with the OP, let someone else demo this pedal with generic punk riffs
It's very kind of you to offer me a Les Paul, John, but I'll stick with my SG thanks.
Do Drummers Hear the difference, in All Big Muffs? Or just We Guitarists, Hear it?
Joe S it’s just unnecessary noise for drummers. They would prefer their guitarist to spend all that pedal money for guitar lessons.
@@rdvgrd6
But then we'd lose our "feel" and "soul"!!! :p
Listen , either your a "fuzz " guy or your not ! So please cut the negative redirec & try to stay on the positive side of the subjects ! 👍😎
Hello John, nice Job !! Witch title did you play at first ?
is this pedal center positive or center negative
BOB
Catch you...with my deathbag ^^
I wish there was more sustain with this pedal. I it feels like a low to mid gain muff. Looks cool though.
Nice playin dude....should take my horses out for a gallop
Why do pedal demo videos always have to be pure blues licks? It could be a ring-modulator and the guy would be bapping away at the blues. 90% of the people buying a big muff are going to use it for punk.
Pandering to the lowest common denominator. Peak corporate move.
Mate, fuzz is used all the time in blues nowadays. Now if you're wondering why they're always playing blues? It's because blues is superior to punk...
There are plenty of videos out there demoing the Russian Muff dimed with shitty punk riffs.
John, do you have a palm tattoo?!? Lol
5:25ish lol
Best note pad ever... it's attached!
I write notes on there. It's my palm pilot.
This should have had some footage with bass as well, this pedal is very popular with bassists.
Just a reminder: the Big Muff is not a "fuzz" pedal. Every iteration I'm aware of has been marketed as a "Distortion/Sustainer" device.
The term fuzz describes the type of distortion. Distortion and overdrive use a boost, which then goes through additional parts that distort afterwards. Fuzzes like the Big Muff or Tone Bender, on the other hand, are one step short of just completely blowing up the boost stage. A little simplified, but fuzz pedals destroy your tone whereas overdrive and distortion shape it.
No one answers my question... is this a digital based pedal?
Analog
Slide fuzz is a taboo
It sounded good until you played that prs
John. Listen to me. You're old. But still handsome. The goofy hair is a young man's game. It makes you look like you're trying to hard. Stop it. That is all.
nitemareman1 chill out man. it's his hair and it looks great.
Old men would kill for his hair